Tech tycoon Elon Musk joined a call between US President-elect Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky the day after the presidential election, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
Remember when we had a whole impeachment hearing against Trump for withholding aid to Ukraine so he could get a political hit piece on Biden? I'm wondering how long it will take before a quid pro quo scenario pops up again. Either in Ukraine or elsewhere. So ya, we're all feeling for Zelensky in the next few years.
Impeaching him might be on the docket, if the Republicans really want Vance in the puppet seat. I think they'd rather manipulate him than whatever fucking impending shit-splosion Trump will become about 3 minutes in.
I think Vance might at least be convinced to do logical things. We know that isn't happening with Donny.
There may exist a scenario where north korea is trying to build something that looks suspiciously like an Ohio class submarine and he has a strange golf bar appear on his desk.
Remember when they used to try to keep corruption somewhat hidden and deniable? Now the richest man in the world is just going to be walking around the White House, tugging the government’s leash on full display.
He's going to be on the cabinet while getting billions in government contracts. The richest man in the world just got a job where he gets to to shovel more government money to himself. And that's what Trump calls 'draining the swamp' and 'sticking it to the elites'.
And somehow, instead of democrats calling that out, they decided to find their own elites to trot out.
U.S. sanctions to Russia forbid the use of Starlink. This includes crimea and the occupied territories. That's why it wasn't enabled.
To clarify on the Starlink issue: the Ukrainians THOUGHT coverage was enabled all the way to Crimea, but it was not. They asked Musk to enable it for their drone sub attack on the Russian fleet. Musk did not enable it, because he thought, probably correctly, that would cause a major war.
And before someone points out the 'cause major war' things, those are Walters words, not Elon's. Musk said "It would make SpaceX explicitly complicit in a marjor act of war and conflict escalation" He later also added that had he been contacted by the US officials and asked to enable it he would, but they didn't.
Nah, he'll use the location services from the dish to pinpoint the Ukrainian troop locations. If they're smart they'll start smashing them immediately.
Musk's whole "slash government spending" schtick is such a farce. Tesla wouldn't have domestic manufacturing facilities without a DOE loan. SpaceX survives off of government contracts.
The NPR article goes into this. Elon likely will award himself money without oversight while cutting programs like NPR and the SEC and other regulatory bodies etc.
I think a lot of Americans don't understand that the USA hedgemony isn't a divine right, it was a deliberate construction with tacit agreement of convenience from the western world.
Much like an economy, belief makes it so.
Much like the UK's arrogance has driven them into geopolitical obscurity, so will the USA's.
In 15 years, Americans are going to wake up and realize that their voices are irrelevant in the world. I don't know how y'all are going to handle it.
I deeply, desperately hope you’re right. In the best case, the military (including the nuclear arsenal) gets as hollowed out as russias before that realization comes.
I'm going to be bummed, but it'll be deserved. Maybe future generations will stop being entitled assholes. Idk. Don't want to live in a disintegrating country. Really don't want my kids to. But I guess we don't always get to pick.
Musk doesn't need to run for office. He's the richest man in the world. With Trump as president, Musk can just call him, offer a few million and get whatever he wants.
Musk has enough money to change whatever rules he wants and tie up all the government lawyers for years fighting over all the rules he might want to break.
He paid for Ukraine's StarLink connections that he shuts off when Musk feels like it, and the incoming president who will shut off aid when Musk feels like it.
I wonder if this will make it into the Senate Confirmation Hearings when Trump makes him Secretary of Making Things Worse Before They Get Better. (Or maybe they are smart enough to not give him a job that requires Congressional approval....)
My prediction is Zelenasky will call for an ellection allowing Trump to fund the war without looking weak after the shut he said about Zelenasky.
It is a real possibility since iran and russia are working together and trump backs israel against iran. The logical next step is to back ukraine againts russia.
I wouldnt be too sure of that. Trump is a businessman who will take what he can and give back as little as possible. Trump got the presidency why honour any agreement with putin?